Utilities Undergrounding

Map of northern Kensington
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Summary

A city-wide project is underway to remove the poles carrying the electrical, phone, and cable lines and to bury those lines underground.  Instead of pole-based equipment, utility boxes would be placed at intervals along the streets.  Current plans call for those boxes to be located above-ground, which many residents believe is not aesthetically pleasing. After studying the issues for several months and gathering community feedback, KTPG approved several motions on June 8th, 2011 in the hopes of achieving a higher quality end result.

This work has been done for a portion of Talmadge, with additional work in Talmadge still remaining to be done.  A portion of Kensington is scheduled to begin in 2012.  See below for information on the first part of Kensington expected to be involved in the project, the actions KTPG has taken and plans to take, and for information on how you can be involved. This page is organized in reverse chronological order, with the newest and most current informaiton at the top. If you prefer to read in chronological order please begin at the bottom of the page.

Status - June 2011


View Undergrounding Survey Results
in a larger map

At the June 8, 2011 meeting, the KTPG received a presentation (55MB PPT, 3MB PDF) from the undergroungind subcimmittee which included the partial results from an internet survey conducted to guage people's willingness to pay a one-time fee to achieve putting more of the equipment underground. After the presentation, KTPG apporved several motions on undergrounding:

  • KTPG endorses the educational document (PDF) prepared by Undergrounding Subcommittee and North Park Planning Committee’s Utility Box Task Force as an accurate reflection of utility box and undergrounding issues facing Kensington-Talmadge and the City of San Diego.
  • KTPG endorses formation of a City wide task force to address the negative aesthetic issues associated with undergrounding and utility box placement, through Council Policy and a City Ordinance. KTPG also endorses the task force working to ensure higher levels of service, such as higher internet access speeds.
  • If the above task force is formed, KTPG will nominate and approve a member of the KTPG for membership in the task force.
  • KTPG requests the Chair of the KTPG to send a letter to Councilmember Todd Gloria (PDF) asking for his support for the city-wide task force.
Transformer survey results
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view the full survey.

On June 14, 2011 the full results of the survey on underground transformers became available.

Status - May 2011

Nick Felfe produced a report on transformers.

Status - April 2011

A report was presented to the San Diego Community Planning Groups to urge the city to regulate utility installations in order to achieve a higher quality result for our community. On April 26, 2011 the Community Planners Committee (CPC), which represents planning groups throughout San Diego formally requested the City Council to establish a Citywide Task Force to help develop policies and ordinances that will protect the aesthetic beauty and character of our neighborhoods and business districts. This led to the creation of an educational document (PDF) on utility undergrounding and how it could be improved.

Status - January 2011

As of January, 2011, neither the KTPG nor its Transportation & Safety subcommittee have taken any official stance on the undergrounding project. The subcommittee continues to gather information and provide a forum for discussion. We work to help the community stay informed about the project through public meetings and information distributed on the www.ktpg.org website.

The KTPG Transportation & Safety subcommitte has received information from a citizen group called "Your Kensington Neighbors for Better Undergrounding". The later group compared the undergrounding done in Talmadge to the undergrounding project done in Mission Hills. They determined that the project in Mission Hills had significantly less visual impact than that done in Talmadge. They provided several documents to the subcommittee:

  • Cover letter urging KTPG to push for a project at least as good as the one done in Mission Hills (HTML)
  • Mission Hills - Talmadge Comparison Final (Word, PDF)
  • Mission Hills - Talmadge Comparison Report (PDF)
  • ATT Cox - Mission Hills - Talmadge Street Summary (Excel, PDF)

Status - November 2010

The utility undergrounding project was discussed at the Transportation & Safety subcommittee meeting on November 17, 2010. The subcommittee decided to post information about two messages that have been distributed in the community by private citizens expressing their viewpoints on the project.

Mailers from Resident Groups

Survey results graph
Sumary survey Results from the First Mailing -
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Residents of Kensington have issued two separate “mailers” to the community stating each of their positions on Utility Undergrounding (see links below). These mailers are not the product of the KTPG nor do they represent an official KTPG position on Undergrounding. However, we are posting them on our website in order to provide the community with as much relevant information about Undergrounding as possible.

As of November, 2010, the KTPG Transportation and Safety Subcommittee continues to work with the city, the utilities, Ken-Tal residents, and other Planning Groups in an effort to gather information about Undergrounding and pursue avenues for improvements in the process and design standards.

The first mailer is from a group called “Kensington Neighbors for Better Undergrounding” and was mailed to each Kensington household on Nov. 10, 2010. The mailer contains a survey/response form. (PDF)

The second mailer was sent via email and states it was “Prepared by Bill Bamberger, Nancy Bamberger, Charles Stebbins, Terry Frey and Randy Moore". (PDF)

After both of the above mailers went out, the results of the first mailer survey forms were collected and then tabulated and summarized.

Status - August 2010

In July 2010, the Traffic and Safety subcommittee voted to recommend delaying (from Fall 2010 to Spring 2011) the creation of a utility district for undergrounding.  The motivation for this change is to allow more time to learn about and discuss options pertaining mainly to the aesthetic impact of the utility boxes.   The current understanding of the subcommittee is that this delay will not have an impact on the timing of the actual work.   This recommendation is on the agenda for the full KTPG meeting August 11, 2010.

Additional information

Status - July 2010

Utility undergrounding is a city-wide effort underway in every council district. Overhead wires for electricity, phone, and cable will be placed underground.  For ease of maintenance access, current plans call for all lines and connections serving each block to be housed in above-ground utility boxes located within the sidewalk parkways, or in residential lawns where parkways do not exist.  Talmadge has much of its undergrounding completed and serves as an example of what to expect in Kensington.

There is concern among some residents of Kensington over the utility boxes and their locations. Some residents believe these boxes are unsightly and should be underground. Other residents feel the above-ground boxes are acceptable and are comfortable with their design in order for undergrounding to proceed as scheduled in Kensington..

The Transportation & Safety subcommittee discussed the project at their July 28, 2010 meeting.  The meeting agenda included an action item to consider requesting a delay in the start of the project in order to provide more time to create an appropriate plan for the project.  According to information presented by the City of San Diego to the subcommittee, there is leeway to delay the creation of the utility district in order to collect more information and to have time to create the optimal plan for the community.  The subcommittee voted to delay the creation of the utility district.   This recommendation will come before the full KTPG in August, 2010.

Public Comment period on MND for work in northern Kensington

On June 21, 2010, the City of San Diego issued a public notice of a draft mitigated negative declaration (MND). This MND covers Map Block 3CC (shown in map on right) in the northern portion of Kensington.  This is where undergrounding work is expected to begin in Kensington.  Public comment must be made by July 11, 2010 in order to be considered.

Transportation & Safety Subcommittee Meeting - July 28, 2010

The Transportation & Safety subcommittee will meet on July 28, 2010 at 7:00 pm. Discussion will continue on the Utility Undergrounding project scheduled to begin in parts of Kensington in 2012.  

The agenda includes discussion and a possible action item with regard to the timing of the project.  Please check the subcommittee page for information on upcoming subcommittee meetings, and the KTPG meetings page to see if this item is appearing on the KTPG agenda.

For More Information:

Please visit the Utilities Undergrounding Project (City of San Diego website).  You can also view a slide show of images from the Talmadge undergrounding project (requires Adobe Flash player) or visit Talmadge to see the work first-hand.